304 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



the nature and use of the Roman alphabet, written down on waxed tablets in 

 the archaic language ; and after a time translated under Christian influence, 

 not always satisfactorily, into the colloquial tongue which we know as Old 

 Irish. The work of the succession of historians, who hammered the " official 

 history " into shape, consisted in selecting, synchronising, and arranging, on 

 principles not always easy to discover, the Orphic fragments which the change 

 of religion had permitted to survive. In the discrepancy as to the matri- 

 monial relations of Tea we have a very welcome peep behind the scenes. We 

 see at once that Tea is no mere etymological figment, for otherwise there 

 would be no such discrepancy. Our historians must often have come across 

 the contradictions and inconsistencies familiar to all folk-lorists who study 

 popular legends told of ancient historical characters. When the synthesis of 

 vhich we have here failed the " official history" was finally evolved, 

 and Wame a regular subject of instruction in the schools, fragments not 

 consistent with it bad but a small chance of surviving; it is only by good 

 luck that now and then on.' of these pariahs of [riBO tradition succeeds in 

 worming it- way into Hteratnn happy chances is now before 



us. Some historian found two narratives, which mad.' Tea wife, the one of 

 Eremon, the other of Glide, lb- might have deduced two "Teas," as a 

 brother historian had deduced two "Scotas"out of a similar discrepancy. 

 Rut be ' one of them; and as a date had somehow been 



fixel foi . than the time of the first appearance of 



lair on the - a had to Glide version. Hence in the 



" official hisl Eremon, and Geide is ignored. 



True, on one of the lines of development of this history, the difficulty is 

 Bui-mounted by identi! lewith Eremon; 1 but the Keating-Four Masters 



notice of this way out of the difficulty. 

 B at u late our- heartily on the chanoe that the 



d of the marriage of Tea was known to, and was simmering in 



the mu in of, the author of VDii, when be was writing his"] m"j 



nothing less than the " Upon Sesame" to an understanding of the 

 e.uly his Cemair. 



. at the place which (leide holds in the " official " history. 

 This documl _ us a long roll of the kings of all Ireland beginning with 

 first king of the Fir Bolg. We may note the accession-dates of this 

 and the other monarchs with which we shall have to deal, merely as a con- 

 venient way of indicating into which pigeon-hole the historians fitted them. 

 For this purpose the dates (Anno Mundi) in the Annah of the Four Masters 



I , nvanii (in IrWhr Texte, iii, .'{L'4 i 



